Switching apparatus for street-cars



No. 6ll,449.

- Patented Sept. 27, 1398. J. a. GBOSHEIM & a L. SEAMAN.

SWITCHING APPARATUS FOR STREET CARS.

(Application filed Apr. 27, 1898.) (No Model.)

. ence being had to the accompanying draw-' ITED STATES JOHN G. GROSHEIM AND GEORGE L. SEAMAN, or GINGINN I, o1-11o.

SWITCHING APPARATUS FOR STREET-CARS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 61 1,449, dated September 27,1898. Application filed April 27, 1898. Serial No. 679,025. (No model.)

1'0 all whom it may col warm certain new and useful Improvements in Switching Apparatus for Street-Oars; and we do declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same, referings, and to the figures of reference marked thereon, which form a part of this specifica-' tion.

This invention relates to certain improvements in that class of switching apparatuszof which the device shown and claimed in our United States Letters Patent No. 598,705, dated February 8, 1898, is a type; and the ob ject of the invention is to provide an apparatus of this character of a simple and inexpensive nature which shall be readily adapted for attachment to cars already in use, the device being capable of adjustment, so as to accommodate it for use under varying conditions, such as will be found in cars of different constructions.

The invention consists incertain novel features of the construction, combination, andarrangement of the several parts of the improved apparatus, whereby certain important advantages are attained and the apparatus is made simpler, cheaper, and otherwise better adapted and more convenient for use, all.

as will be hereinafter fully set forth.

The novel features of the invention will be carefully defined in the claims.

In order that our improvements may be the better understood, we have shown in the accompanying drawings an apparatus constructed according to our invention, in which drawingsv,

Figure 1 is a side elevation showing portions of a car provided with an apparatus con- Fig. 2,

the end of the shaft whereon the switch-actuating levers are mounted, and Fig. 5 is an enlarged fragmentary view showing the adjustable connection between the operatingstafi on .the car-platform and the levers beneath the car. V

In the drawings, 1 indicates the body of the car; 2, the platform, having a dashboard 3, and t the truck-frame onwhich the car is supported.

5 5 indicate L-shaped or angular brackets,

each bolted at one end to one side of the truckframe 4, so as to extend beyond the end of the same and in the same plane with each other under the car, the depending ends or vertical arms 6 6 of said brackets being alined and thickened. In the arm 6 of each bracket is formed a vertical slot 7, adapted to receive the end 8 of a transverse shaft 9, which extends across the space between the brackets beneath the car and serves to support the switch-actuating levers 10, which are similar in construction and arrangement to the devices shown in our above-mentioned patent. Each lever 10 is actuated by a lever 11,pivoted, as shown at 12, under the car, its forward end extending under the platform 2 and being coupled to a link 13, the end of which is pivotally connected, by means of a screw 14:, (see Fig. 5,) to a slide 15, mounted on a crank-arm 16, secured on the lower end of a stafi 17, which extends up above the platform 2, ad jacent to the dashboard 3, being journaled at its upper end in a bracket 18, secured to the dashboard.

I The slide 15 is adj ustably held to the crankarm 16 by means of the screw 14:, by which said slide is coupled to, the link13, said screw acting as a set-screw, and in this way it will be seen a simple and efiective coupling for the forwardend of the lever 11 andthe crankarm of the staff 17 is provided, permitting these parts to be readily coupled without requiring an accurate adjustment of the pivotpoint of said lever 11.

There is a staff 17 provided for each of the levers 11, so that the lever 10 ateach side of the car may be conveniently and independently. actuated to switch the car in either direction from the track along which it is moving, the operation being similar to the oper ation of the apparatus described and claimed in our before mentioned patent, and the bracket 18 serves asa bearing for each of the said staves, these being adjacent to each other at the central part of the dashboard.

.Each staff 17 is provided with a crank-handle 19, fixed to it beneath the bracket 18 and projecting away from the dashboard, and on the upper face of each handle 19 is mounted a horizontal pin 20, arranged for endwise movement. and adapted to engage one of a series of openings 21 in a curved flange 22, formed at the front face of the bracket 18 at that side thereof, so that when the staff 17 is turned to set the lever 10 at one side of the car the pin 20 by engagement with one of said openings 21 will hold the staff in place. The construction of these parts will be clearly .Seen from Fig. 3.

The pin 20 is provided with a handle 23, extending up alongside the crank -handle, and said handles 23 and 19 are flattened on adjacent faces to permit them to be pressed closely together by the hand of the operator. The pin 20 is held and guided by a lug 24 on the crank-handle, and on the pin, between the handle 23 and the crank-handle, is arranged a spiral spring 25, which serves to hold the pin normally in engagement with the opening 21 in flange 22. When the handles are pressed together by the hand of the operator, the pin will be disengaged from the opening 21, and when the handles are released said pin will immediately spring back into engagement with the opening.

The ends 8 of the shaft 9 are flattened at opposite sides, (see Figs. 1 and 4,) so as to permit of a certain degree of sliding movement along the slots 7 in brackets 5, the shaft being thereby held against turning movement, and in order to permit of adjusting the shaft up or down to set the levers 10, carried on it in proper working position to accommodate differences of height of the brackets above the tracks, as well as to compensate for wear of the parts, we provide adj usting-screws 26 26, arranged in the vertical portions or arms 6 of the brackets at the upper and lower'ends of the slots 7, said screws being arranged to bear above and below the ends-of the shaft 9.

From the above description of our improvements it will be seen that the apparatus constructed according to our invention is of an extremely simple and in expensive nature and is especially well adapted for use, since the apparatus is adapted for application to cars already in use, and it will also be seen that the apparatus is capable of some modification without material departure from the principles and spirit of the invention, and for this reason we do not wish to be understood as limiting ourselves to the precise form and 1 arrangement of the parts herein set forth.

Having thus described our invention, what we claim as new, and desire to secure by Leting in combination a switch-actuating lever to be moved, an operating-lever pivotally mounted under the car with. one end coupled to the switch-actuating lever and arranged, when moved pivotally, to move said actuating-lever laterally into and out of position to engage the cam or projection on the track, a staff extending above the platform and having below the platform a crank-arm coupled to said operating-lever and arranged to move the same when the staff is turned, a bracket wherein the upper end of the staff is held, a crank-handle on the staff, and a locking device carried by the crank-handle and adapted for engagement with the bracket to hold the staff against turning, substantially as set forth.

2. A switch-actuating apparatus comprising in combination a switch-actuating lever adapted for engagement with the switch-point to be moved, an operating-lever pivotally mounted under the car and arranged when moved pivotally, to move the switch-actuating lever into and out of position to engage the cam or projection on the track, a staff extending above the platform and having a crank-arm below the same, a bracket'wherein the upper end of the staff is held, a crankhandle on the staff, a locking device carried by the crank-handle and adapted for engagement with the bracket to hold the staff against turning, and an adjustable connection between the crank-arm on the staff and the operating-lever beneath the car, substantially as set forth.

3. A switch-actuating apparatus comprising in combination a switch-actuating lever adapted for engagement with the'switch-point to be moved, an operating-lever pivotally mounted under the car with one end coupled to the switch-actuating lever and arranged, when moved pivotally, to move said actuating-lever laterally intoand out of position to engage the cam or projection on the track, a staff extending above the platform and having below the platform a crank-arm, a slide mounted for movement endwise along said crank-arm, a set-screw for holding said slide in adjusted position, said set-screw'also forming a pivot-point for the connection of said link with the crank-arm, a bracket wherein the upper end of the stafl is held, a crankhandle on the staff, and a locking device carried by the crank-handle and adapted for engagement with the bracket to hold the staff against turning, substantially as set forth.

4. A switch-actuating apparatus comprising in combination a switch-actuating lever adapted for engagement with the switch-point to be moved, an operating-lever pivotally mounted under the car with one end coupled to the switch-actuating lever and arranged, when move'd pivotally, to move said actuating-lever laterally into and out of position to engage the cam or projection on the track, a staff extending above the platform and hav IIO ing below the platform a crank-arm coupled to said operating-lever and arranged to move the same when the staff is turned, a bracket wherein the upper end of the staff is held, a crank-handle on the staff, a pin arranged lengthwise on said crank-handle and provided with a handle, a spring for operating said pin, and an apertured flange on the bracket adapted to be engaged by said pin to hold the staff against turning, substantially as set forth.

5. In a switch-actuating device, the combination of brackets secured to and projecting from the truck-frame and having depending ends provided with vertical slots, a shaft having its ends formed with flattened sides to fit in and slide along said slots,'a switch-actuatin g lever mounted on said shaft and provided with operating mechanism, and adj ustingscrews mounted in the depending ends of said brackets and arranged to bear above and below the ends of the shaft to hold the same i position, substantially as set forth.

In testimony whereof we affix our signatures in presence of two witnesses.

" JOHN G. GROSHEIM.

GEORGE L. SEAMAN. Witnesses:

JOHN ELIAS JoNEs, J. D. THORNE. 

